On Wednesday 3rd November, Kim went out to the airport to help people unload dogs that had been rescued from China.
This took a very long time, about 3 hours or so, but after it was done Kim was offered a dog to foster! The foster had pulled out, so she got the chance to foster a 1.5 year old Samoyed for about a month or so.
The dog was so good! He was a little hyper when we got him and he did pee inside overnight on the first night, but other than that, he was awesome to have around!
We got him some toys, treats and a bed (which he doesn’t use) and just hung out with him for a bit.
On the Sunday, Curtis went to hockey and then Kim got an Uber out to catch his game a little later!
Whilst Kim was out, she setup cameras to check on the dog to see how he was. We weren’t sure how he is being left alone, but turns out he’s fine!
Unfortunately, once we got home, we took him out for a walk and he vomited many times. We then had to take him to an overnight vet, which took 3+ hours and we didn’t get to sleep until 4:30am!
The vet thought he was just a little sick and gave him a little medication and fluids to get him sorted.
The place we fostered from then complained that we took him to the vet and seem to be refusing to refund us for the treatment now, which is very fun.
He was sick for most of the week this week, but has now improved a lot!
We likely won’t foster again from these people, either, as they keep saying the dog will be leaving within the next day and then we hear nothing…It’s all a little crazy and we got no information on the dog, either!
Kim took him out today to hang out with another dog and her friend and he was a very good boy!
We did get to go out for dinner on Tuesday for Kim’s birthday, too. Kim’s friend came over to pet sit and we walked down to Gastown to a French restaurant we went to when we first moved to Vancouver.
The food was alright but the service was pretty awful. We probably won’t be heading back there.
We still have the dog now, even though we’ve been told he’s going 3 times! We are still awaiting a call from them to tell us more about the plan, but for now, we are having a great time chilling with the awesome, chill doggo.
We’re back! Hello! We went on a little trip to Sunshine Coast for Curtis’ birthday. You can read about it here.
On Tuesday 14th September, in the evening, we drove out to Horseshoe Bay to catch a ferry out to Sunshine Coast. Whilst it is not an island, it’s technically connected, there’s no other way to get there without a boat, so we took the ferry.
The ferry arrived late, but that didn’t make much difference to us, other than the fact we were hungry!
There weren’t many people on the boat, so it was quick and easy to get ourselves some food. We ate that and then the ride was pretty much over. (it’s only 40 minutes).
We drove off the boat and drove on to our first accomodation, which was a cute little cabin!
Here’s a low quality video of the cabin!
When we arrived, the cabin was incredibly cold as the windows were open, but after a bit of time with the fire on it got nice and toasty. We arrived fairly late, so once we got settled we watched a little bit of TV before sleeping.
Here’s another low quality video of the cabin!
Day 2
We woke up in the awesome cabin and drove down to Gibsons for a spot of breakfast.
We got a breakfast bagel each from a cafe there. The staff were wonderful (and one was British!) which made it a very nice experience.
Once we had our breakfast, we had heard that people were filming down the street for a holiday film! We went down to check that out, but not much was happening at the time, other than there being some fake snow on the floor.
We walked around Gibsons for a bit as there was a nice little marina area and the sun was shining!
After walking for a bit, we found a park to go to for a hike/walk!
We drove to Cliff Gilker Park where it said there were waterfalls and hiking trails, which sounded perfect.
The walk was through the forest with nice big trees and some really nice little wooden bridges!
We saw the waterfall, but it wasn’t really much of a waterfall, but still peaceful.
We walked around here for quite a while, mostly to just find all the bridges…we love bridges!
Once we left here, we drove to a petting zoo to let some animals, but unfortunately it was closed on that day, so we turned around and drove to something nearby that we found, called Robert’s Creek Pier.
Robert’s Creek is a small town with some nice little buildings that we looked at and when we went down to the pier we nearly got blown over it was so windy!
Wind!
We drove back to the cabin and had a look online for some places to get food and also a look for other things to do whilst we were in the area.
We eventually found a place for dinner, which was a Mexican place. Luckily, they were able to seat us once we got there (they were very busy!) And we grabbed ourselves some pretty tasty Mexican food!
We went back to the cabin and watched a bit of TV and relaxed.
Whilst relaxing, we heard some noises outside, so we checked and sure enough, it was a BEAR! We saw him right next to our cabin trying to get at the bins, but we think he scared himself away when he knocked over the bin.
It was our first time seeing a bear in the wild and it was pretty large and right outside!
Day 3 – Curtis’ Birthday!
We woke up, got ready and left the cabin to grab some breakfast.
We went to a cafe (after a bit of back and forth between two) and managed to get a seat. It was pretty small and busy!
We had to wait 45 minutes for our food, which seemed pretty long, and when we got the food it was…Alright. It looked good but wasn’t incredible. Curtis had a smoked salmon and dill cream eggs benedict whilst Kim had a breakfast bowl.
We left here and tried to go to a few cool looking spots with nice views, hikes and waterfalls, but they all seemed to be closed for some reason!
We ended up finding a park near the new cabin we were moving to, so we sat there for a bit and stared into the water.
We checked in to the new cabin and it was not quite as we thought. It looked like a cabin, but was pretty large. It was quite dark and just not as good as we hoped. But it did look cool!
Looks cool outside, right?
We relaxed for a bit once we got in. The weather had started to deteriate, which we knew was going to happen, so we prepared to just hunker down and do very little.
Kim found a really nice brewery called Batch44 and we headed there for some drinks and dinner. Kim also found out there was a quiz, so we entered that and didalright! We weren’t last, which is a win!
We headed back to the cabin and got some really good sleep.
Day 4
It was raining all day, so we just slept and stayed in, watching some TV and playing card games.
We went and got pizza for dinner. Nothing fancy but a bit of a tradition for lazy days!
There was a large wind/rain storm which blew over a power line! This caused us to have an outage and, as the power line was laying on the only bit of road in/out of the town, we were stuck in the dark!
We were able to get some candles from a neighbour and we spent the night playing cards and chatting. It was kinda nice, in a way.
We didn’t get too cold and headed to bed. We were however awoken around 02:00 when the power came back on! But we were glad that was able to get sorted.
Day 5 – The Final Day
We woke up and got some breakfast at a diner style place and then looked for something to do before we needed to catch our boat.
We found somewhere called secret beach (it was sign posted, so not very secret!) And we had a wander around on the beach and the logs that were on there.
Pretty nice place!
Kim found a nice rope swing and had some fun on that!
We took the ferry home and drove back. It seemed to take far less time!
We got home and made some dinner and then it was time for Curtis to play hockey. He’s finished his 3rd game now and is really enjoying being back out there on the ice.
Curtis has a goal and two assists already, all of which came from the last game!
And there we have it!
That was our sunshine coast trip. We hope you enjoyed having a blog to read again. We had some fun times and we were excited to share it with you.
Maybe we’ll have some other fun stuff coming up at some point, but we hope everyone is well.
Today is Curtis’ Nan’s birthday, so we woke up and chatted with her and Curtis’ family whilst they celebrated!
After chatting with them for a while, we got ourselves ready and headed out to get a Vietnamese coffee and have a nice walk.
New Vietnamese Coffee Place?
We got a Vietnamese coffee from a place just down the street. We’d seen the place for a while and thought we should try it.
It turns out they also sell the right Vietnamese coffee, so we can buy some! We enjoyed the coffee and we will need to go there and try their Bhan Mi, too.
We had a nice long walk after getting our coffee. It was sunny and started warm, but was certainly cold in the shade.
Clock Is Up!
We put up the new clock when we got back home and Curtis then watched hockey whilst Kim relaxed and got some admin done.
We went back out to get some things from the supermarket nearby and then had some chicken wraps for dinner with homemade potato salad.
We watched some TV and relaxed for the remainder of the evening.
We woke up and had a chat with Kim’s family as it is her birthday today! We had a good chat with them and then got ourselves ready.
We went out for a walk, and stopped in at a few places on the way.
Firstly, we got some breakfast at Cafe Crepe, Kim got a banana and chocolate crepe and Curtis got a cinnamon bun crepe.
We ate our breakfast and then went to get ourselves a coffee. Kim got a free coffee, as it’s her birthday, so that was awesome!
We then went for a long walk to and around Stanley Park and we were out for quite a while just walking around.
We got back home and watched a bit of TV before we got ready to head out.
We got ourselves ready and walked down to Gastown to go for dinner. Curtis booked us in at an Italian restaurant.
We got to the restaurant and they had really good COVID-19 protocols and explained everything when we got there.
We got ourselves some homemade bread with olive oil and also some lambrusco wine.
Curtis got lasagne and Kim got a pasta dish that was like a carbonara but without any meat. Curtis really enjoyed his and Kim liked hers but it was very peppery!
We then got tiramisu for dessert which was really good!
We then walked back home in the pretty cold weather and then just relaxed for the rest of Kim’s birthday.
We watched a bit of TV and then got ourselves ready. The weather outside was beautiful, so we went out for a walk.
It was cold outside, but the sun was shining and we stopped to get a coffee to warm us up.
We found out today that there are new restrictions within BC for the next two weeks, meaning neither of us can do our sports and a few things are changing, such as both of our office’s closing.
Kim did a little bit of work, writing up a message to tell people that the office was closed.
After we finished our nice long, cool walk, we went out to the shop to get that done.
We got that finished and then when we got home we had leftover curry from yesterday.
We watched Lilo & Stitch after dinner and just chilled out for the rest of the evening.
We woke up pretty late and Kim had a chat with her family as it was her sister’s birthday today.
Once that was done, we had some breakfast and slowly got ready for the day.
Once we were ready, we drove up to North Vancouver and to Whytecliff Park. We had been in this area before, but not in this specific park.
When we got there, we climbed around some rocks and got some really nice vantage points! It was a pretty nice place but pretty busy for what it was,along it a little bit challenging to get around.
We left here nor too long after we arrived and the weather started to get colder and less nice.
We drove to where we thought another park was, but it turned out just to be a fancy housing estate, so we left here.
We ended up in a place we had been to before and grabbed ourselves a coffee before walking around the seawall.
It was starting to get really windy, cold and feeling like it would rain, so we drove back home.
On the way back, we checked the supermarket to see how busy it is, as it is Thanksgiving weekend here in Vancouver, so everyone will be shopping. Sure enough, it was super busy with a large line, so we decided to come back later.
We headed home and had some pizza for dinner and watched the film Tangled which Kim really wanted to watch.
Once we were done with that, we went out to the shop at around 20:45 to get it done with next to no people there, so it was much faster and easier.
We came back home and played some games and chilled out for the evening.
Kim was excited to give Curtis his birthday present, so she did that when we woke up.
The present was a bunch of snacks from all the other countries we have lived in or will live in, so the UK, New Zealand and Norway.
Curtis loved this gift so much and is looking forward to tucking into the snacks with Kim.
Breakfast!
We woke up around 10:00 and got ourselves ready.
We then headed down to a cafe we had walked past yesterday and got ourselves some breakfast.
Kim got herself a croissant with tomato and goats cheese along with an iced caramel latte. Curtis got a breakfast wrap and a flat white.
We headed back to the hotel to eat our breakfast and then finished getting ready to go out for the day.
Train Wreck
We drove for about 10 minutes to get to the Train Wreck, which is exactly what it sounds like! This is a train wreck from the 1950s which has been used a graffiti spot for artists as well as a trick/jump spot for mountain bikers!
We walked through a forest and across a cool suspension bridge to get to the wreck and a beautiful river to boot!
We got some great photos in and around the Train Wreck and learned a little about what happened and what they are used for now.
Rainbow Park
We left the wreck and took another drive to Rainbow Park.
We didn’t spent too long here, but we walked around for a bit and took in the peacefulness of the park and the beautiful (smokey) view.
Delicious Dinner!
We went out for a dinner at 17:00 to a restaurant not far from us.
This is the first time we have been in a proper restaurant for dinner together since COVID-19 hit the world, so it was a little strange but we were outside and very distanced.
We got some wine to share and then for food Kim got duck breast whilst Curtis got some venison!
For dessert, Curtis got a lemon tart and Kim got a chocolate fondant!
This arrived with a candle and ‘happy birthday’ on it from the staff at the hotel for Curtis’ birthday, which was very kind!
We finished our food and then headed back to the hotel. It turned out that we had been our for about 8 hours, though it didn’t feel like it!
When we got back, we watched The Social Dilemma and then played some Connect 4, which was included with Curtis’ birthday present.
We woke up and Kim went out to get some croissants for breakfast. We heated those up and had them with some butter and that was a delicious start to the day!
We then got ready for the day and once we were ready, we went out to get a coffee. We wanted to go to Small Victory but the queue was too long for the time we had so we went to Starbucks instead.
The skies today are incredibly smokey, so much so that it can be seen and you can smell/taste the smoke. This is due to the wildfires in the US.
Once we got the coffee, Curtis had to go down to get a haircut!
He arrived and was right in the chair! He had a nice chat with his barber and got his haircut, of course.
Birthday Present Shopping
Kim went out whilst Curtis was having his haircut to get some birthday presents for Curtis as well as some other things.
Kim went to a place and got a present and then tried to go to another place but it would have taken far too long so she left and went on to Metropolis in Burnaby to get some work shoes and some other presents.
Kim did the small food shop on the way home and then when she got back home, we had some food!
Breakfast For Dinner
We had breakfast for dinner which was delicious! We ate this and watched some TV, followed by some Tony Hawk and a little more TV.
We had a chat with Curtis’ family as it is his mum’s birthday today!
We chatted for quite a while and then hung up and started our day.
Shopping
We went to get the shopping done and actually paid to park underground as we were getting a lot of heavy and bulky things, so it was easier to do it that way.
We got back home and decided to go out for a nice walk as the weather was beautiful!
Warm Sunny Walk
We walked down to the seawall and just kept walking! The sun was beating down and just beautiful!
We walked all the way around to English Bay Beach, but it got a little too busy, so we headed back home.
We got a Vietnamese coffee on the way home, because they’re delicious so we can’t say no!
Homemade Thai Curry
We got home and Kim ordered some things online and then she made a Thai curry!
The curry was delicious and Kim also made a ‘lazy egg’ with it, too, which was something we really liked in Thailand!
There were a lot of new tickets as most people are getting ready to travel to Mexico for the company trip!
Unfortunately, Curtis didn’t qualify for the trip (had to have started before March) and he didn’t want to pay for it, so he’s staying back next week.
Curtis got a video from the marketing team who created it to explain the new company brand story and mission and that was going to be shown in the boardroom for all to see and then ask questions.
Curtis had to set that video up in the boardroom and then partook in the meeting.
The meeting includes some drinks and food, which was awesome!
After that meeting, Curtis had another meeting with some people in his team going to Mexico and discussed some things that are need to know whilst they’re away as well as get further information regarding a project which Curtis will have to do some work on over the next week.
Curtis then finished up for the week and had another drink with the few people left in the office and then left.
He walked up to Max Performance where he got one of his visors from and returned that before going home.
Curtis got a photo of the crazy sky and the sun bouncing off the buildings!
Kim’s Day
Kim went to UBC today for her Project Management course.
Kim learned a lot and felt like she was really making progress which was amazing!
After, Kim went for some drinks with some people from work for someone’s birthday, which was lovely.
Kim then came home!
Food & Sleep
When Kim got home, she made a veggie spaghetti bolognese and then we sat and ate that whilst watching a bit of TV.
We then went to bed and we are very glad it’s the weekend.
Mr & Mrs Hale 